Fuel for use in internal-combustion engines and for other purposes



Patented May 29, 1928.

PATENT OFFICE.

UNITED STATES ERNEST GUSTAV EDWIN MEYER, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

FUEL FOR USE IN INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

No Drawing. Application filed June 5, 1926, Serial No. 114,021, and in Great Britain June 12, 1025.

This invention relates to fuels for use in internal combustion engines and for other purposes.

The object is to provide improved fuels containing considerable proportions of the higher boiling or less volatile or low grade hydrocarbon materials for use in the operation of internal combustion engines and particularly internal combustion engines of the character employed in the propulsion of road or marine vehicles.

Numerous proposals have been made with a View to achieving this object and certain of these have included the addition of an ether in order to facilitate the ignition a d combustion of the fuel.

Hitherto it has been found that the employment of an ether is open to objection on a number of grounds.

For instance, the retention of the ether in the mixture isin some cases difficult and this has led to the addition of bodies intended to prevent the volatilization of the ether during storage'and use.

In some cases phenolic bodies have been added to the fuel mixture for this purpose while in other cases where coal tar hydrocarbon distillates of the usual commercial grades have been used, the small proportion of phenolic bodies-which they contain has acted in this direction. It would, however, appear to be due to the presence of these bodies in the known mixtures that difliculty has been experienced owing to the umming of the valves and the formation 0 gummy or resinous deposits in the parts of the engine adjacent thereto. I

One observation on which the presentinvention is based is that by the employment of alkali, and particularly ammonia, in the production of such ether-containing mixtures, certain advantages accrue; for instance, it would appear that the formation of a gummy or resinous mass in the gas passages adJacent to the valves and on the valves themselves may be largely if not entirely prevented by the treatment of these fuel mixtures.

The process of producing a fuel mixture adapted for use in internal combustion engines in accordance with the invention comprises, broadly, the introduction into a mixture consistin essentiall of an ether and hydrocarbon istillates o a proportion of a Apparently the desirable results obtained are to be attributed to the retention of a proportion of the highly volatile basic material in thehydrocarbonand this may possibly be due to such materials containing a proportion of water.

On the other hand, it may be that a proportion of the highly volatile basic material particularly if this be ammonia, is retained in1 fsolution in the hydrocarbon material itse Fuels in accordance with the invention in addition to ether ma contain aproportion of constituents, usual y hydrocarbons, of relatively low boiling point; for instance, the

fuels may contain a proportion of hydrocarbon materialboiling below 100 C. but not exceeding 25 per cent and the percentage of such constituentsof low boiling point may be as low as 8 or 9 per cent.

Generally speaking, it is found that fuels containing between 9 and 22 per cent of constituents boiling below 100 C. are satisfactory.

Where the fuel is intended for use with internal combustion engines of the character employed in automobile vehicles, the end boiling point may be such that between and 100 per cent of the material distils over below 300 C.

Preferably the hydrocarbon material em ployed is such that 6 to 25 per cent distils over at temperatures up to 100 0,30 to 60 per cent at temperatursup to 150 0., 50 to 98 or cent at temperature up to 200 C., an; upto22 5to300'O.

As is well known the fuels adapted for use in internal combustion engines, of the type usually employed in the propulsion of automobile vehicles employing jet carburet- 86 to 100 per cent at temperatures -temperatures in question and about 185 C. or up to 200 C.

In order to obtain a fuel of this kind it is considered necessary to enrich the straight fractions ofc'ertain crude oils boiling up to the maximum temperature above indicated, that is to say a temperature in the neighbourhood of from 185 C. to 200 0., by the addition thereto of material boiling below 100 C. derived from the treatment of further bodies of oil or crude oils of other origin.

Hydrocarbons boiling up to 85 to 90 C. possess a high commercial'value, whereas the mineral oil'hydroca'rbons boiling from 100 to 185 C. or above are of considerably lower value. p

In order, however,'to obtain a market for the latter grade of distillate, the more valuable distillates must'be used in considerable quantities.

Thus,-the economical exploitation, that is to say, the exploitation of existing sources of supply, of crude oil inorder to produce the best financial results has hitherto been impossible of attainment in'many cases.

A fuel according to the invention may consist'essentially of a hydrocarbon distillate having an initial boiling point about C. and a final boiling point between 150 and 225 (3., inassociation with a small proportion of ether and a proportion of a hi hlyvolatile basic material.

.referably the hydrocarbon material is of such character that only 1 to 5 per cent passes over at 80, from 12 to 25 per cent passes over below 100 0., and, for instance, 83 per cent at temperatures up to 150 C.

The final boiling point of the hydrocarbonma-terial may vary between the limits above stated according to the character of the oil; for instance, it may be found more convenient or economical to employ material which has a final boiling point between 175 and 225 C. and material having a final boiling point of 200 or even as low as 180 C. or 150 C. will in the majority of cases be available in sufficient quantity to render the use of such commercially practicable.

From the above itwill be appreciated that the invention in certainof its preferred embodiments is distinguished from the majority of previous proposals in that the fuel is devoid of hydrocarbon material boiling below a temperature in the neighbourhood of 80 C. or contains a quite inconsfderable proportion of such material.

It furthermore may not comprise any considerable proportion of material boiling above 250 C. and rarely comprises more than about 20 per cent.

The proportion of ether in fuel mixture in accordance with the invention isv in all'cases small, usually below 5 per cent, and inmost cases it does not exceed 3 per cent.

The precise minimum boiling point of the hydrocarbon material employed may Vary within the limits stated, as also may the proportion of the same which distils below a temperature of 100 C.

'Normally hydrocarbon material boiling at a temperature not below 80 0., .or of which merely 2 to 5 per cent distils over at 80 C.-, and of which 8 to 25 per cent distils up to 100 (3., will be used. 4

The following particulars indicate the character of certain distillates which may be employed in accordance with the invention Percentage distilling over Temperature A B i C D E F G Degrees centigrade so ml 75 The invention also extends as will be understood to the fuel mixtures produced by the process.

The invention extends to fuel mixtures including coal tar distillates or mineral Oil distillates or both.

By the expression hydrocarbon materials of higher boiling point, low grade distillates boiling above 160 C. and in some cases considerably above this limit, as well as the so-called low grade or No. 3 petrols which cannot normally be satisfactorily employed in the operation of relatively high speed internal combustion engines such as are used for the propulsion of automobile vehicles, are intended, While where hydrocarbon maaterial of lower boiling point has been referred to, fractions distilling over completely at temperatures below 100 C. are meant.

As instances of materials adapted to beemployed as the main constituent of a fuel mixture consisting mainly of hydrocarbons of relatively high boiling point, in accordance with the invention, the so-called white oils and gas oils may be mentioned.

The following particulars are given by way of example to illustrate the composition of a fuel mixture in accordance with the invention consisting mainly of hydrocarbons of relatively high boiling point 87 parts by volume of a coal tar oil boiling between 160 and 260 0., 9 parts by volume of a petroleum hydrocarbon boiling below 100 0. and 4 parts of diethyl ether are mixed together and when completely mixed a proportion of an alkali in solution is added and intimately mixed therewith.

As an example of the composition of a fuel mixture the following is given 96.5 parts of a petroleum fraction exhibiting a boiling range as follows :8 to 12 per cent up to 100 0. and 85 to 100 per cent up to 300 0., are mixed with 3.5 parts of ethyl ether of s. g. 0.720 and the mixture treated with liquor or gaseous ammonia.

The concentration or proportion of the alkali employed would appear to be a matter of little importance while, as above indicated, the alkali may be employed in the proportion of 1 part of alkali to 10,000 parts of the mixture.

While the invention is perhaps more particularly concerned with the production of fuels for internal combustion engines of the non-Diesel type, it is also concerned with fuels for Diesel engines and fuels intended to be burnt in furnaces as, for example, in firing boilers.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines and for other purposes, consisting essentially of hydrocarbon distillates in admixture with 'ether and a highly volatile basic material.

2. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines and for other purposes, consisting essentially of hydrocarbon distillates in admixture with ether and ammonia.

3. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines and for other purposes, consisting essentially of hydrocarbon distillates and containing a small proportion of ether and as a highly volatile basic material.

4. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines and for other purposes, consisting essentially of hydrocarbon distillates and containing a small proportion of ether and ammonia...

5. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines consisting essentially of a hydrocar bon distillate, having an initial boiling point of about 70 0. and a final boiling point of about 300 0. and containing a small proportion of ether and a highly volatile basic material.

6. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines consisting essentially of a hydrocarbon distillate, of which 1 to 5 per cent passes over up to 80 0., 8 to 25 per cent up to 100 0., to 65 per cent up to 120 0., and the balance boils at temperatures not substantially exceeding 320 0., and containing a proportion of ether, not exceeding onetwentieth of the volume of hydrocarbon matrial, and a proportion of a highly volatile basic material.

7. A fuel for use in internal combustion engines consisting essentially of a hydrocarbon distillate, of which 1 to 5 per cent passes over up to 80 0., 8 to per cent up to 100 0., 20 to 65 per cent up to 120 0., and the balance boils at temperatures not substantially exceeding 320 0., and containing a. proportion of ether, not exceeding onetwentieth of the volume of the hydrocarbon material, and a proportion of ammonia.

8. A fuel for internal combustion engines consisting essentially of a hydrocarbon distillate having an initial boiling point of from 70 to 80 0. and of which not more than 5 per cent passes over up to 80 0., a final boiling point of not exceeding 320 0. and containing a small proportion of ether and a proportion of a highly volatile basic material.

9. A fuel for internal combustion engines consisting substantially of 95 per cent of a hydrocarbon distillate of which not more than 5 per cent passes over up to 80 0. and of which the balance is ether and a highly volatile basic material.

10. A fuel for internal combustion engines consisting of a hydrocarbon distillate, the main proportion of which boils below 160 0., while a proportion thereof up to 5 per cent boils below 80 0., together with a small proportion of ether and a small proportion of a highly volatile basic mamrial.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ERNEST GUSTAV EDWIN MEYER. 

